22 A FLORA OF MANILA 
Specimens should not exceed 40 cm in length, and if longer than this, 
as is very frequently the case, the stems can be folded back and forth or 
cut into sections. In such plants as the grasses and sedges tall specimens 
can be folded back and forth like the letter N, or folded several times 
if necessary, and a piece of tough paper, slit and slipped over the folded 
ends, will hold the specimen in position while drying. In species with 
very large leaves frequently it becomes necessary to take sections only. 
In large pinnate leaves all the pinnae on one side can be removed and the 
remaining part of the leaf folded together for drying; in very large leaves 
such as the palms, etec., portions only can be prepared, but full notes 
should be taken as to size, number of pinnae, lobes, etc. Large fruits 
can be dried separately, and fleshy fruits can be sectioned or preserved 
in alcohol or in some other preservative. ‘Thick fleshy roots can also be 
sectioned and thick stems can be sliced longitudinally. Often it is advisable 
to dry separately fleshy or large fruits, tubers, etc., but as soon as dried, 
such detached parts should be placed with the rest of the specimen for 
permanent preservation. 
In collecting specimens the most convenient method of transporting them 
is in a portfolio, spreading the plants out on sheets of thin paper. The 
most serviceable portfolio is a pair of simple frames made of split bamboo 
similar to and of about the size as the presses, described below, that is, 
slightly larger than the botanical driers; this double frame can be supplied 
with straps for convenience in opening and closing, and for purposes of 
transportation. In wet weather it is also advisable to have a piece of 
black oil cloth, such as is used for covering the tops of carriages, or a 
piece of cotton cloth dipped in melted parafin, sufficiently large to protect 
the enclosed papers and specimens in the portfolio from being wet by 
rain, etc. In practice it will be found that specimens can be transported 
from one to two days in such a portfolio, before transferring them to the 
press, without, in most cases, being seriously harmed; as a rule however, 
specimens should be arranged in the press as soon as possible after they 
are collected. 
To dry specimens the selected plants or parts of plants are laid out 
flat, in as nearly a natural position ase may be, between sheets of soft, 
unsized, porous paper and subjected to considerable pressure. The object 
is to extract the moisture as rapidly as possible, at the same time keeping 
the specimens flat and under sufficient pressure to prevent their wrinkling, 
but at the same time not sufficient to crush the more delicate parts. The 
papers must be changed at intervals. 
In the Philippines the most generally available soft paper is the 
common Chinese bamboo paper that can be secured of Chinese dealers in 
most large towns; this makes excellent driers, especially if stitched into 
pads of about 4 thicknesses. Blotting paper makes excellent driers, and 
even old newspapers can be utilized. Driers should be cut or folded into 
a size not to exceed 45 by 30 cm, and if this is done then there will be no 
danger of making specimens too large to be mounted on standard herbarium 
sheets. 
In preparing specimens for drying lay the selected plants on a single 
sheet, or between the folds of a double sheet of thin paper, the specimen 
sheet, then add one or more driers, then another specimen sheet, other 
driers, etc.; old newspapers make excellent specimen sheets. When all 
